Fleets of vehicles, such as taxis, rental cars, construction and agricultural vehicles are most often intended for the use of many individuals. Since these vehicles were typically designed for single owner-operators, they have traditionally been configured to either permit or deny total access or control based upon the use of an ignition key. Anyone with the ignition key is permitted complete access to the vehicle simply by inserting the key into a lock.
In recent years, various accessory devices for cars and other vehicles have been devised, such as AM/FM radios, tape players, CD players, electronic maps and the like. These systems have typically been connected to the vehicle, as manufactured, by tapping into the electrical power system. To reduce the risk of theft, they have been protected by passwords or special electrical keys that permit or deny access to those devices based on the knowledge of special codes, or the operation of special radio transmitters.
Other devices such as radio controlled car locks, remote car starters and anti-theft systems have also been developed that permit individuals owning the vehicles to control access to their vehicles. Radio transmitters in small key fobs that have one or more buttons communicate with a radio receiver on the vehicle when the buttons are pressed to perform a wide variety of functions, such as unlocking or locking doors, beeping a horn, turning on the engine or the like.
A different situation exists when vehicles are used in fleets. Fleet vehicles, such as delivery trucks, taxis, delivery vans, construction vehicles and the like, may be operated by several individuals, wherein each of the operators is permitted to do only certain things with the vehicle. A delivery driver of a vehicle on one particular route may only be permitted to operate the vehicle on his route, whereas a different driver operating the same vehicle may only be permitted to operate the vehicle on a different route.
A consumer renting a car may be permitted to drive a rental car for only a predetermined distance under the terms of his rental agreement. After the predetermined number of miles has elapsed, he may not be permitted to use the car, whereas another driver may be permitted to use the car at all. One operator of a loader/backhoe may be permitted to drive the vehicle down a road since he has a vehicle driver's license, and another operator of the loader/backhoe may be permitted to operate only the backhoe once the vehicle has stopped.
The communications devices currently used with vehicles do not allow the operation of a vehicle to be parsed on such a case-by-case basis. If a rental car is rented, for example, the operator is given the ignition key together with the radio transmitter key fob. The vehicle, so to speak, does not “know” one user from another, since there is only a single key fob and key that are useable to unlock the doors and start the car. The car responds in an identical fashion to the original ignition key or any duplicate, and to the original radio transmitter key fob or any duplicate. If the ignition key and radio transmitter key fob of one vehicle are exchanged for another ignition key and key fob that are keyed to another vehicle, neither vehicle can be operated.
A better system is needed to manage vehicles in fleets. For fleet management, it would be beneficial to give different levels of access to different users, all of whom can operate the same vehicle. It is also beneficial to give one person access to a variety of vehicles, each vehicle of which may provide that person with vehicular access different than the access those vehicles provide to a different person. It would also be beneficial to permit each user to carry around his or her authorization or access levels with them from vehicle to vehicle.
One important subcomponent to a fleet management system such as this is the apparatus by which the vehicles recognize each individual user. The present application is directed to that subcomponent: an improved way of identifying an operator to a vehicle.